September 26, 1999 |
LOVING GOD, we are making our way in a time when the world offers us little sense of direction or meaning. We turn to you and the Church community to help us "move on" with a focus on those things that are most real and lasting. Grant us the grace to persevere beyond our doubts, confidently claiming you as our destiny. PRAYER & ACTION REFLECTION: Our age is characterized by questioning and searching. The Church offers us a hearth, a home and a family-a place where we can keep in touch with who and whose we are. How do I see the Church? As a safe haven from the wilderness or as a place to be nourished and strengthened in my efforts to tame the wilderness? ASK MYSELF: "...we find ourselves by losing ourselves in loving others." What personal experiences have I had that reflect or affirm this truth? Where do I find myself on the map of my spiritual journey? How clear is my destination? What role does the Church play in helpng me find my bearings in uncertain times? "Catholicism never curses or abandons the world but wants to give it light and life." How does Catholicism bring me light and life? How do I bring light and life to my world?
Every Sunday (or Saturday evening) the people of God will gather in prayer. They are spiritually nourished by the Liturgy of the Word and the Liturgy of the Eucharist. There is a danger that we treat the Scripture readings as we often do with a newspaper or a magazine, that is, quickly rushing through and glancing at the headlines. The Scriptures demand more time, more reflection and prayer. There is always a message for us from God. The priest in his homily will try to focus on some aspects of the readings. In such a short time he can never exhaust the many inspiring thoughts that are found in each reading. In my many years as a priest I have met families who take this approach. After Mass as the family is driving home, or better yet, when the family will gather for their Sunday meal, they discuss what they heard Father speak about, or some thought or phrase from one of the readings, or from a hymn sung at the Mass, or from some prayer of the Mass that caught their attention.
It is amazing to listen to the insights of the children. The family is communicating with one another. There is sharing, listening, learning, praying, growing closer to God. After all, who are the FIRST and BEST teachers of the children? of course, Mom and Dad. Let us take some examples from today's readings. The first reading is from Ezeckiel. Who is he? One of the children could look that up in the Bible. In that first reading God is talking to His people and says, Hear now, House of Israel: is it my way that is unfair, or rather, are not your ways unfair? This could develop into a discussion among family members how at times we do not treat God fairly! Or in the second reading we are reminded not to be selfish; humbly regard others as more important than yourselves, each looking out not for his own interests, but also for those of others. What a powerful and reflective lesson for every family. In every Mass we find so many enriching thoughts for discussion, which will help to bring a family closer to each other and to God. Give it a try each Sunday. Good Luck and God bless you.
Fr. Sylvano
Another aspect of the Jubilee forgiveness is reconciliation. From the viewpoint of Jubilee this reconciliation amounts to restoration of the beginning when all things and all peoples were in harmony. All broken relationships: within the self, within the family, within the community of the Church, and the community of the world are to be restored to relationship with one another and to God. Preparing to give and receive this reconciliation requires serious soul-searching. There are many structures of society that contribute to the rupturing of relationships that we participate in without speaking out against the injustice. Yet we are not alone. The Spirit of the Lord is with us to help us make a step to give or receive reconciliation. Pray for the courage and make that step.
Jonathan Winters did a routine as the little boy Chester Honeyhugger talking to his parents that I always liked: "How come you always tell me 'No' - 'No, I can't go outside.' 'No, I can't watch TV.' Well, I'm going to run away from home. Hmmm, first time you ever said 'Yes'!"
A young man in today's Gospel is asked by his father to work in the family vineyard. He tells his father 'No' but then regrets his selfishness and goes to work.
Where is God calling us to work? Where are we telling Him 'No'? Let's let go of our childish ways and follow where He leads. It's the way home.
Father Murphy
P.B. Shortal
"Why does the church ask a divorced person to go through the process of getting an annulment if they want to marry again in the church? Why isn't a civil divorce enough?"
Consider this: When two people marry, they do so in three different forums. The first forum is between the man and woman, each saying to the other, "I take you as my spouse."
The second forum is in civil society. In every culture, people are treated as married, with all the attending benefits and burdens, after going through certain procedures or ceremonies. Even if married in a church, one cannot marry without the civil entitlement--the license.
The third forum is within the church. Each church has its customs and laws about what constitutes marriage within their church. We teach that marriage is a natural good, raised to the dignity of a sacrament. And we teach that a true marriage is binding until death.
When a marriage ends, it must also end in each forum, and in the same order as indicated above. First the spouses themselves acknowledge that the marriage is over. Then they get a civil divorce or dissolution, thereby forfeiting the privileges of marriage. Finally, Catholics go to the church's courts--called a Tribunal--to ask that their marriage be declared "null" or non-binding.
A marriage is declared non-binding when it is judged to be less than a true marriage, that is "a true partnership . . . ordered to the good of the spouses and the procreation and nurturing of children." (Canon 1055)
"Okay, but why should a divorced non-Catholic have to get an annulment?"
Divorced non-Catholics only have to go through the annulment process if they want to join the Catholic church or if they want to marry a Catholic who wishes to continue practicing their faith.
Again, consider this: Imagine a holy and happy marriage, between, say, a Methodist and a Baptist. Should the Catholic church recognize this as true marriage? Well, of course! It would be very presumptuous to say such a marriage was anything less. If we recognize good marriages between non-Catholics, then we must also treat marriages that have failed between non-Catholics with the same respect.
The theology of marriage and annulments is easier to understand than some of our past pastoral practice. To say it baldly: divorced persons have often been treated poorly by our church and our ministers. At a time when they feel most in need of reassurance, compassion, friendship, spiritual advice and comfort, they have been greeted with cold bureaucratic paperwork and judgmental attitudes that make them feel like unwelcome failures, unworthy to come to the Table or do more than sit in the back pews. And then we wonder why they don't come to Mass?!
May the peoples praise you, O God; may all the peoples praise you. (Psalm 67:4)
Dear Brothers and Sisters,
We are here together in this striking Cathedral Basilica to worship God and to let our prayer rise up to him like incense. In singing God's praises, we remember and acknowledge God's dominion over creation and over our lives. Our prayer this evening reminds us that our true mother-tongue is the praise of God, the language of Heaven, our true home.
We are gathered on what is already the eve of a new Millennium by any standard a decisive turning-point for the world. As we look at the century we are leaving behind, we see that human pride and the power of sin have made it difficult for many people to speak their mother- tongue. In order to be able to sing God's praises we must relearn the language of humility and trust, the language of moral integrity and of sincere commitment to all that is truly good in the sight of the Lord.
We have just heard a moving Reading in which the Prophet Isaiah envisions a people returning from exile, overwhelmed and discouraged. We too sometimes experience the parched desert-land: our hands feeble, our knees weak, our hearts frightened. How often the praise of God dies on our lips and a song of lament comes instead! The Prophet's message is a call for trust, a call to courage, a call to hope for salvation from the Lord. How compelling, for all of us today, his exhortation: Be strong, fear not! Here is your God. . .he comes to save you! (Is 35:3-4)
Pope John Paul II
THEME: FREEDOM OF CHOICE: Miss Havisham in Dickens' Great Expectations could not change the past, so she made the choice to live in it. She sat at a long banquet table covered with cobwebs, nibbling mice, and rotted food, waiting for her husband-to-be. She wore a yellowed wedding dress as tarnished and torn as her view of live. While she held desperately to the past, the present was not negotiable. Living in the past with regrets and mistakes causes us to despair and lose hope. All the readings today encourage us to change from the harmful ways of the past and live in good emotional and spiritual health during the present.
1) Ezekiel 18, 25-28
2) Philippians 2, 1-11
3) Matthew 21, 28-32
So often our lives seem to hold to the injunction Don't just do something, stand there! But the call of Christ is a call to action. To turn away from wickedness means to continually turn toward the good. To turn from good to evil is to turn from life to death, and death is the same no matter how long one has been alive (1). When our Father asks us to go out into the vineyard to work we should say yes only if we fully intend to work (2). Tax collectors and prostitutes are entering the kingdom of God before you (3). They have said yes to slavery to the will of God and have become his children as well as his servants.
"Angel of God, my guardian dear, to whom God's love commits thee here, ever this day be at my side, to light and guard, to rule and guide. Amen." Did you ever learn this prayer? I learned it in kindergarten and I still remember it. The prayer comes to mind right now because it is the week the Church celebrates the feasts of angels. Wednesday, September 29th, is the feast of Michael, Gabriel and Raphael. Then on Saturday, October 2nd, it's the feast of the Guardian Angels. I like angels. In fact, I like the whole concept of what the Greek word "angelos" means--messenger. They are God's messengers to you and me. Michael, Gabriel and Raphael are each named in the scriptures. Shakespeare uses the word "Michaelmas" in his plays to refer to this time of the year. Michael, the name means "who is as God" is most often depicted as the conqueror of Satan or evil. He is portrayed as such on Coventry Cathedral, rebuilt after the bombings of World War II. Gabriel whose name means "the hero of God" is best known as the messenger who announces to Mary that she has been chosen to be the mother of God. Finally, Raphael appears in the Book of Tobit and the name means "God has healed." But the warmest image is that of the Guardian Angels. This is based on the reference in Matthew 18 to little children having "their angels" constantly beholding the heavenly Father's face. I like it! I love the image of having my own Guardian Angel, assigned by God, just to watch over me. I remember being told to move over in my seat in school so that my Guardian Angel could sit down. I did it. And I even looked over every now and then just to see if my angel was still there. The movie "Harvey, the Rabbit" makes me think of my Guardian Angel. In recent years, angels seem to have reentered our lives in a big way, but you know I've never let go of my Guardian Angel. In fact, I still say "Angel of God, my guardian dear..." It is so wonderful to know God cares enough about me to assign my own angel. What do you think? God bless!
Father Michael Doyle, OSM
